Breitbart London can reveal that the arrests made by police at a “far right” protest in Brighton, United Kingdom this weekend were actually those on the hard-left, or what the police call “anti-fascist” side of the day’s clashes.
News outlets such as the BBC and ITV, as well as local radio and newspapers all reported the arrests as if they were part of the hard right demonstration. The BBC’s headline read: “Arrests at Brighton anti-immigration demo” and ITV’s coverage said: “Twelve people have been arrested in Brighton in connection with an anti-immigration demonstration in the city”.
But Breitbart London has learned from Sussex Police that in fact the 14 arrests in total made on Saturday were part of a pro-immigration group on suspicion of violent disorder.
Police had received reports of assault and criminal damage “involving a large group of masked men in Brighton”, and arrests were made from the group of 400 pro-open borders demonstrators.
The BBC reported: “Anti-fascists also confronted a group attending a Great Skinhead Reunion” and overtly implied that the arrests were made on the “far right” side.
The BBC’s correspondent on the ground failed to identify the nature of the arrests in his live coverage, and in his follow-up reporting.
A spokesman for the Sussex Police told Breitbart London: “14 people were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder, as detailed in the press release issued on Saturday. The arrests were made from within the anti-fascist group.”
At the time, the police issued a vague statement failing to identify those arrested until queries from Breitbart London. They said on Saturday: “We’re confident that having made a number of arrests at such an early stage, we have significantly reduced the risk of disruption and disorder in the town centre.
“Unfortunately, whilst the vast majority of demonstrators act peacefully, a small minority appear to have come with the intention to cause problems.
“Following the above events, we are enforcing Section 60AA of the Public Order Act, which gives us the right to remove people’s face masks if we feel they are likely to be involved in criminal activity or violence and are concealing their identity.”
Local paper The Argus reported: “Far right groups The South Coast Resistance and The Pie and Mash Squad organised the No More Refugees march but were met with a larger counter demonstration Stop the March for England of around 300 protesters.
“The 300-strong crowd marched through the city centre before it finished at Brighton railway station at about 12.30pm although police continued to monitor a number of protestors as they dispersed in small groups throughout the afternoon.
Chief Superintendent Nev Kemp said: “We made 14 arrests within 10 minutes of being called to an incident this morning, and I think that reflects our approach towards demonstrations – we are always happy to facilitate peaceful protests, but incidents of disorder and criminal activity will not be tolerated.
“We have had a lot of positive feedback from members of the public and consider the operation a success. Despite the clear intent of some taking part – to commit offences and create disorder – we have had no reported injuries or significant damage or disorder.”
“I would like to thank the public for their support and also my officers and staff who worked hard over several hours to keep the people of Brighton and Hove safe.”
And local outlet Juice Brighton sought to portray the hard left as “peaceful”, stating: “Peaceful demonstrators make their point that fascists are not welcome in Brighton”.
Heart Radio offered similar biased reporting.
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